J-K Finance Minister Drabu sacked over Kashmir remark

Majid Jahangir

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 12

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dropped J&K Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu from Cabinet over his remarks that Kashmir “isn’t a political issue” which has embarrassed the party, top sources said.

They said decision to drop Drabu was taken as the PDP leadership, including the chief minister and senior party leaders, decided to go tough against Drabu for going against party line during his speech in New Delhi.  

“Yes, PDP has decided to drop Drabu,” a top PDP leader said.  “Obviously all other necessary formalities are being done.”  

On Sunday, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti’s uncle and party’s second in command Sartaj Madni had asked Drabu to “retract the statement immediately”.

Governor NN Vohra has accepted the removal of Drabu  from the council of ministers in response to Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti’s letter urging him to  accept her request to drop the minister.

Since yesterday, pressure was mounting on Drabu, who played a key role in stitching an alliance with the BJP during Mufti Mohammed Sayeed's tenure earlier and again when Mehbooba Mufti became the chief minister, after newspapers published his remarks that people were "barking up the wrong tree" as the Kashmir issue was not a political issue.

"It (JK) is not a political issue as far as I can see. They have been barking up the wrong tree for the last 50 or 70 years by talking about the politics of it; that the political situation has never improved. We seriously need to look at in terms of how it is a society that is in search for itself," Drabu had said at an event organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi on Friday. — With agency inputs